Heartwood Weekend
Click the image to enlarge
Festival Dinner and Poetry Reading
Poet Linda France will read a selection of poems from Heartwood created in collaboration with artist Kim Lewis. The three themes all have their origins in the natural world – Flying , on birds; Through the Garden Gate , on plants; and Border Song , a long poem transposing the Bible’s Song of Songs to the North Tyne valley. Linda will also give a taste of her work in progress, looking at botanic gardens in this country and abroad.There will also be another chance to view the Heartwood exhibition featuring Kim’s illustrations and the exhibition, The Nature of Form, by Cathy Duncan, Christopher Lewis, Jenny Mathers and Teresa Toms.
Date: Saturday 13th April, 6.30pm - 9.45pm
Cost (including dinner) : £20.00 per person
Guests may stay overnight at special rate of £25.00 per person and attend Linda's poetry writing workshop the following day.
Workshop: Being Here
A writing workshop, with poet Linda France, responding to the environment of Shepherd’s Dene. We will explore the poetic possibilities of paying attention, direct observation and deepening our connection to the natural world. The emphasis will be on authentic experimentation and refreshing our relationship with language so this day of writing is open to all, beginners and more experienced alike.
Date: Sunday 14th April, 10am-4pm
Cost: £45.00 per person
To book, please contact Julie Oliver at Shepherds Dene:
Tel: 01434 682212, Email:
Download a flier (Word) for both events »
Poetica Botanica
Click the image to enlarge
At Durham Book Festival 2012 Linda launched her 'Botanical' project – a long-term period of research and development towards a new full-length collection centred on plant life, ecology and climate change. Durham Book Festival will be following Linda's progress on the project over the course of the next 3 years and Linda will be documenting it on her new blog – poeticabotanica.wordpress.com. She will also be taking up a Fellowship at Durham University's Institute of Advanced Study in Autumn 2013 to focus on this work.
Border Song
Click the image to enlarge
Linda's collaboration with Kim Lewis re-imagining the Old Testament Song of Songs set in the North Tyne Valley is now published as a pamphlet by Hareshaw Press. Border Song is available from:
- Kim's studio at The Hearth at Horsley
- Kim's website www.kimlewisart.co.uk
- Robinson-Gay Gallery in Hexham
- Various other outlets in Northumberland.
Heartwork
Click the image to enlarge
PlaySpace in Glasgow has just published an essay of Linda’s on poetry and spiritual practice. It began as a talk given on retreat at Dhanakosa and for the printed page has grown and transformed to include illustrative poems and pictures.
Copies are £6 + postage.
To buy a copy, please fill in an order form.
Payments can be made by cheque or by bank transfer. You can also email to place an order.
The Memory Garden
Click the image to enlarge
Arising from a collaboration with Viccy Adams at Newcastle-Gateshead Bridges Festival 2011, The Memory Garden is an imaginative re-interpretation of Newcastle University Campus as a garden. As well as taking the form of a folding map (beautifully designed by ADQ Design), it is also a guide through how memory works to ways into writing about garden spaces. It is published as a trailer to the British Science Festival, which Newcastle will be hosting in 2013, and distributed freely throughout the campus.
From Ariel to The Zoo Father
The Poetry Room, a poetry book reading group at Newcastle City Library, hosted by Linda and Anna Woodford, continues to go from strength to strength. It is a space for close reading and discussion of a new collection of poems every month – on the first Tuesday, 6–8pm. See www.poetrybookgroup.com for more details.
